Unrest in Burundi risks spiralling into civil war and genocide, rights groups warned on Tuesday, urging the international community to deploy a peacekeeping force to protect civilians in the country.

Since then, more than 1,000 people have died, between 300 and 800 are missing, some 8,000 are being held for political reasons and more than 300,000 people have fled the country, according toÂ a report published on TuesdayÂ by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and Burundian Human Rights League (ITEKA).

The groups said the government viewed protests against a third term for Nkurunziza as a threat, but after an attempted coup in May 2015, the ruling party "started to use the classic rhetoric of defending the Hutu majority as being persecuted and threatened by the risk of the return of an oppressive Tutsi military".